FOR more than a century the seaside delights of Scarborough have had holidaymakers from all over the country flocking to the North Yorkshire coast.

They have braved the chilly North Sea, built castles in the sand, promenaded in the parks and generally had a really good time.

Now the varied joys of the bustling port could be about to win it the ultimate tourism accolade - the title of Resort of the Year.

Scarborough has been shortlisted as one of the finalists for the top title in the 2000 England for Excellence awards.

Bournemouth on the south coast is its only rival for the honour - and both resorts now face a nail-biting wait until November 1 when the winner will be announced.

"To be nominated for the award is an honour itself, but to reach this final stage where we are up against just a single other resort is fantastic," said the borough's jubilant head of marketing, Mike Wilkinson.

"To get this far, in an increasingly competitive tourism market place, shows that the borough is doing an awful lot of things right. Our plans for the future can only take us from strength to strength."

The final decision is now in the hands of a panel of judges, all experts in the holiday world.

"It would be a tremendous feather in pour cap and give the town a great boost if we were named as winner," said Mike.

"To be able to use an award like this in our marketing for 2001 and beyond would be fantastic help in attracting more visitors to our resorts."